The present invention relates generally to guide assemblies and, more particularly, to a guide assembly having a unified conduit array.
During construction of residential and commercial facilities, it is often required to pass conductors through the structure of the facility. Such conductors include power cables, water lines, phone cables, and television signal cables. Additionally, with the proliferation of “smart buildings” it has become more desirable and cost efficient to pass computer cables as well as entertainment and security cables within wall, floor, and ceiling cavities. Such systems are often referred to as structured wiring systems and often include a bundled array of phone, computer, co-axial, and speaker cables.
Often, the devices associated with a specific system share a common point of origin. For simplicity, only one such system will be described. In buildings equipped with radiant heat systems, a plurality of radiant heating loops are connected to a manifold and extend about the building. The simplest of radiant heating loops have a first end connected to a hot water inlet, extend about the area to be heated, and have a second end connected to a return manifold thereby forming a “loop.” A heating fluid, such as water, is heated by a heat source, such as a water heater or boiler, and is pumped through the heating loop. Such radiant heating loops are frequently located in close proximity to a finish floor of the area to be heated. The heating loops can be positioned beneath a subfloor or sandwiched between a subfloor or substrate, and a finish floor.
To maximize the usable space of a structure, the heating loops often extend generally transverse to the floor surfaces in close proximity to a wall surface. Such an orientation minimizes the space obstructed by the heating tubes. Often, an elbow is employed to facilitate this generally transverse directional change. For radiant heat systems, each end of a loop must be threaded through an elbow. A single loop heating system requires an elbow to be passed over each end of the heating tube. Each elbow must then be securely fastened to a sub-surface to allow a finish floor to be formed thereabout. Individually securing each elbow is a time consuming and tedious process and often delays the construction process. Although there are known elbow constructions that allow the tube to pass radially into the elbow, these elbows only support individual tubes. That is, often multiple elbows must be individually secured and individual conductors passed therethrough or thereinto. Additionally, depending on the finish floor system formed about the heating tubes, inadvertent movement of the individual elbows can result in damage or displacement of the conductor passed therethrough during formation of the finish floor.
It would therefore be desirable to have a system and method capable of quickly and efficiently guiding and securing a plurality of tubes or conductors in such applications.